Palm Pre Plus and Pixi Plus could be coming to Europe by the end of this month
Time to get those speculative juices flowing again. Pre Central have unearthed the above O2 Germany promotional poster displaying a Palm Pixi stood in front of such smartphone luminaries as Sony Ericsson's X10 and Motorola's Milestone. Given that the Pixi has yet to make the hop over the Atlantic, their supposition is that we're looking at its Plus variant and that this early flier is indicative of a soon-ish release for the Euro-bound Plus devices from Palm. Can we be any more specific than that? Why yes we can, thanks to Laurent Guyot, a French PR chap, who indicates an April 27th launch date for the Pre and Pixi Plus on the SFR network. Put as much trust into this info as you feel appropriate, though it does look like a resoundingly logical time to get these handsets out into eager European hands.
[Thanks, Garth]
[Thanks, Garth]
























And we're still waiting over on AT&T. Grrrrreat.
@Oxyrt
It's pretty much worth switching for. WebOS is more fun than you can even imagine with your eyes closed. I switched to Sprint to get a Pre. And then last week I switched to Verizon to get another one ( free unlimited mobile hotspot = $60 per month dollar value!!! )
@DavidMcGuigan
Switched from my AT&T iPhone to the Sprint Pre that is.
@DavidMcGuigan Not having any problems like @leemahi?
@Oxyrt
Never had a single issue unfortunately. I've run 15 apps at once just to see if I could and never got the too many cards message sadly. Maybe it's a karma thing?
@DavidMcGuigan
PS is it just me or is the speakerphone on Pres really really good? Like weird good.
@DavidMcGuigan Yeah, and if you set it down on a flat surface (desk/table) the curved back keeps the speaker lifted and actually improves the volume by reflecting it off the large surface its on.
Palm is really trying to get these phones out there. Even though I have a pre, its annoying already. list time!
out of the blue ill get "too many cards"
many times web apps refuse to load
no cards will be open but i still cant play need for speed
ive gone threw 3 pres, 2 with the same issue that the speaker didnt work.
phone can freeze about once or twice a week.
battery life is 3 hours. honestly its the worst crime ever. the phone is practically worthless with 45 minutes web, 20 mins txting and 30 minutes talking.
you can just forget recieving a text while recording. or even recording period.
uploading vids to any site is almost impossible.
3g can be spotty in spaces youd think would have okay signal.
But with all those problems its still okay. but man i need something new. just wanted to vent to a clean post!
@leemahi
powering on the phone now with 1.4 it takes almost 2 minutes to boot.
and exactly right now since the new update, my screen will turn off but the keyboard will still be lit, and no matter how much i open and close it the screen is black. fuck
and it takes 5 to 10 seconds just to open an app. just a bit too long.
anyone else can testify to these problems? please tell me.
@leemahi
Had my first Pre from launch day until last week, heavy daily use and never had an issue with it ( other than I dropped it on concrete and it had a lil' scratch on the screen after that ). Sounds like you've got a case of the lemon fingers.
@DavidMcGuigan
I should mention that I haven't jailbroken/homebrewed mine up ( have you? ). I've put it into developer mode and installed a test app or two when I was thinking about developing for WebOS, but never had any of those issues. Battery gets me at least a day, but having a touchstone at work and home makes it a non issue.
Are you serious that yours has frozen? Never even heard of that ( but only know 4 Pre owners so ).
@leemahi Cdma or gsm pre? Pre or pre plus? I would like to try a pre.
@NextGen
yes im completely honest i have at least one of these problems every day. it doesnt take much but the fact i cant count on it to upload pictures to facebook or im bored on the toilet and the only way i can play a game is to reset the phone, which takes 2 minutes, it really becomes useless.
and just this morning i was fighting my phone over putting a call on hold, recieving a text, and returning to the previous call. phone couldnt do it.
I have sprint. had sprint for 6 years. being a "premier" customer makes it really hard to get on a different network when you can get a new phone every year.
what it does when it works most of the time, its great. love the email notifications, the web speed, and call quality.
and ive had a pre since september. the first one i had i jail broke it, had my tether, and got tons of cool apps. after a 4 month joy ride,i then had to use the phone on speaker to hear. the following 2 phones i didnt jailbreak em.
iphone 4is looking really good.
@DavidMcGuigan
I had so much fun having a gba player on mine, and just messing with it for hours following 100s of pages of precentral forums to hack it to death. but i wasnt gonna do it all over again when the original finally broke. the problems i have now are on a new pre theyve sent me a few weeks ago
@leemahi
Did you use the same Palm profile on both devices though? It transfers almost everything to your new device from the cloud, including all of your installed apps. When I just switched from my Sprint one to my Verizon one it even transfered the Facebook Beta app I had installed. I'd flash your device if I was yours and start a new profile. I think the real issue could just be the stuff you did.
@DavidMcGuigan
it did transfer but just the apps i got from the palm app store. nothing from preware stuff i put on it saw it to the other pres.
@leemahi
ha ill try it!
@leemahi it sounds like you just need a doctor visit to me.
http://www.webos-internals.org/wiki/Webos_Doctor_Versions
Make sure you remove any and all patches then backup your profile. It's possible that some patches get backed up with your Palm Profile (Add/Remove Launcher Pages definitely does).
I seriously have had NONE of the problems you have and I've had a Pre since 6/6/09.
Wow, look at that. X10, UMTS Pixi, Milestone, phones that you don't see in the US.
It's frustrating seeing all the Palm products in GSM/HSDPA flavour, which means they will work in Asia. But no go, no sign of Pre, Pixi here.
Well, I guess they gotta do something with all the surplus devices they have over here.
German sure is one sexy language
I hate to say this but I really don't see these selling. In the UK O2 have the Pre exclusively and it's simply far, far too expensive. It's actually cheaper to get a HTC Desire on T-mobile (and with a better call plan to boot) than a Pre and that's just ridiculous for a device that desperately needs to shift units. The Pre, and the Pixi now that I think about it, haven't aged well and look very clunky next to the current batch of smartphones and some basic choices (the lack of an on-screen keyboard being the obvious one) make them feel very old fashioned in a lot of ways.
Which is a massive shame because the OS has so much potential but they just haven't done enough to establish themselves and everyone else seems to be moving faster than Palm to deliver new features and/or products. Really don't want to say this but I can't see Palm turning this one around without a killer new product in the next few months, the Pre Plus and Pixi Plus ain't going to do it.
@BOFH +1 yep no one will buy them .. they might take them free (included in a plan) but there's no room in the market for webOS devices .. Symbian dominates .. Android and Apple are there and so is RIM .. with Win7 still nowhere .. the chances of Palm making any sales are slim to none.
@BOFH
Yes they are.
@DavidMcGuigan : Uh, that's not a particularly useful comment, I assume that you're talking about sales of the Pre in the UK. O2 announced good launch day sales but since then they've barely mentioned the Pre. Official figures seem to be very hard to come by but the comments from O2 store managers (we sell 20x as many iPhones as Pre's is a particularly striking one) don't bode well. Worse, just look at the offers being put in place: the phone is now free on all plans, Carphone Warehouse were offering two free flights if you bought the handset over the christmas period... that is not a good sign.
Again, not saying this because I want to bash Palm or any stupid reason like that, just trying to be realistic and the simple fact is there's NO buzz around Palm devices here in the UK whatsoever. O2 have an exclusive on it, they're not pushing it in any way, they've slashed the price and yet whenever you go past an O2 store the Pre table is almost always deserted. Palm needs to do something drastic at this point if it's got any chance at staying in the market and, sadly, I don't really see how they're going to do that with their current resources.
@BOFH
"Really don't want to say this but I can't see Palm turning this one around without a killer new product in the next few months, the Pre Plus and Pixi Plus ain't going to do it."
Yes they are.
@DavidMcGuigan Sadly, I don't think they will (in the UK). The issue is the price, the fact is that as good as WebOS is, the Palm Pre feels like a KIRF phone in the hand compared to the the devices HTC is pushing out, and yet it is the same price or more expensive than the Legend and Desire in the UK. I do really hope WebOS succeeds in some form, but I've asked in 3 different O2 stores in central London near my work, and the attendants freely admit is not as big a seller as they had hoped. I think Palm have tried too hard to keep costs down with the hardware personally, and I would like to see them licensing WebOS to HTC to help them regain some marketshare.
@DavidMcGuigan : oooooh, okay.
Here's the problem with the Plus models: they look almost IDENTICAL to the old ones. Unless you're a geek you can't tell the difference when you pick 'em up and they really don't offer anything new and interesting in terms of hardware. Apple had this problem to a certain extent with the 3GS but solved it with a) a ton of advertising and press, b) making a device that was so much quicker it felt like a whole new experience and c) a few minor but noticeable upgrades such as video recording. Uh, plus the fact that the iPhone was and is a desireable bit of kit with a massive ecosystem anyway of course, that helped too.
Here's the question you need to ask yourself: how does the Plus improve the original device and why is that going to change people's existing views of the original? The built-in touchstone is a possibility but that's a gimick really, the improved keyboard is nice but, again, is this the kind of thing that really changes people's opinion of the entire device? It still suffers the same sub-par software performance as the original, it's still got very few apps available, it still has the same outdated design (and it realy does feel older than it is sadly) and it still has no instant 'wow' feature. WebOS is very nice indeed but compared to, say, the HTC Desire's build of Android it isn't anywhere near as flashy which, sorry to say this, is what Palm needs right now. Some flash, some sizzle, something to get people talking about webOS devices and the Plus doesn't have any of that. And now it may be too late, even if they put out an ad demonstrating the plus (heh) points of webOS (multitasking being the obvious one) most, if not all, of that functionality is either already available or will soon be available on the competition.
@BOFH
Pretty sure I'm right on this one.
@BOFH
and i ask why in the hell isn't the htc desire not in the states yet on t-mobile?? way off topic but t-mobile U.K. has it why not U.S.?? damn sure not getting a pre, the phone is not that good for me.
Palm needs to offer them unlocked straight away. Also tying themselves to 1 carrier (in the uk) is such a huge mistake. Just look at the desire. HTC whored it out to everyone and for the first time in 2 years I would sign up to an 18 month contract as the deals are so good. Won't be doing that as I have my nexus but still, anyone in the market for a new phone will never choose a Pre at the current price.
oh god, why o2? please don't let them be exclusives. what is it about mobile companies letting the worst networks get hold of their phones as exclusive, anyway?
@Wiggy Fuzz In Germany o2 is a great network for mobile data usage. HSDPA everywhere, free tethering included! Indeed, the Pre is sold exclusivly through o2 here, but other suppliers sell them as well, because there is no simlock or branding. So o2 is a good choice here. T-Mobile oder Vodafone won't sell it this way.
@Wiggy Fuzz Oh, did i mentioned the phones in the ad are sold without a contract?
Is it weird that I want to replace my 2.1 Milestone with a Pixi? I thought that the Pre/Pixi Plus were coming to Vodafone Uk though...
Palm who?
And the Europe don't care.
This is great news. They've fired their fail advertising company and this time they get a fresh start in a new region. Palm may not be done yet, if they can sell enough of their current models in other markets they may be able to make a comeback.
Yes, We don't care about palm here in Europe. That phone is out for over a year and now they release it again only in UK at O2.
Palm should sell their webos to a manufacturer that see the potential and use it in a up to date device, then sell it worldwide.
Bye Palm.
@Milo66 palm has only been selling webos devices for a few months. They came out in the US first & they've been on the market less than a year.
I work in a o2 Ger/Shop though,
the Pré was at 481€ and it dropped to 361€ in 3 months... quite a shame for such a nice looking OS though.
If we compare it to the Milestone its still at 481€ for like 5-6 Months? now?
Wake me when it's available unlocked.
Got some breaking news for some people commenting in here. England does not equal Europe. Also, it is upgraded hardware as well as Europe now can pay for apps. Probably not Earth shattering things, but it will help increase sales some. And France hasn't seen any version of these phones so it will be new to them.
@19850615
Agreed.
Nobody here in the UK gives a shit about the Pre, it's all iPhone, Android and Sony Ericsson dumbphone over here.
I feel sorry for it as my contract is due up in a few months and I'd seriously considered the Pre. But then they did the whole Pre Plus thing in the States and I'm not going to buy a new phone knowing full well that the superior model is floating around out there.
ASIA?
Palm how about pay HTC to produce your handset ,like google with nexus,and allow HTC sell their own of webos desire.
As with the previous devices, released a year after the US, this is not all of Europe, but a couple of countries in Europe. It´s like they're releasing them in New York and Illinois but ignoring the other states.
And I don't care any more :-(
@journalismnazi New York and Illinois are states, not countries, so that is not actually the same thing. Releasing in Mexico but not Canada would be the North American equivalent.
@Cringer
Yes, I know they are states, that's why I wrote "states".
Do you understand the concept of an analogy ?
Sheesh.
Too little too late. It really is bad timing; they should've done it a few weeks after the american release but now the Desire has come out, its gonna be an easy decision for consumers.